October 13^th

Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia and Minister of Transport, Construction and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic arrived today in Nis ahed of the rest of the RS Government and visited Nis Airport Constantine the Great. Together with Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic Minister Mihajlovic held a meeting with the management of the Nis airport to get acquainted with the business operations of this company. This year Nis Airport records a number of departures to various European destinations, and the construction of a new control tower in cooperation with the SMATSA, which will modernize airport infrastructure, is also planned.

October 12^th

Nis City Mazor Darko Bulatovic met today with the head of the Islamic Community in Serbia, Sead Nusufovic, and the mufti of Nis, Eldin el Asceric.  During the meeting the situation of the Islamic community in Nis was discussed as well as the future steps regarding the preservation and restoration of the cultural and historical facilities of the Islamic community. The Mayor emphasized that Nis was a city of diversity and that this was its advantage. He expressed the readiness of the city to help the Old Mosque in Sumatovačka Street, which is in a very bad condition, be restored and put into operation so that the members of the Islamic community in Nis could use it. Mayor Bulatovic pointed out that if there was understanding and will there was not any problem that could not be solved, and that the aim was to have the members of all religious communities in Nis livingequally well.

October 12^th

On the occasion of the celebration of the Nis City Liberation Day in the First World War, the flower wreaths were laid on the monument dedicated to the Duke Petar Bojović in the park across the City Hall. The respects on this day were paid by Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic, Deputy Mayor Prof. Dr. Milos Bandjur and President of the Assembly of the City of Nis, Rade Rajkovic. The wreaths were also laid by the delagations of the Nisava District, the Police, the Army and associations that nurture recollection of the liberation wars and their victims. On December 12, 1918, units of the First Serbian Army, led by the Duke Petar Bojovic, were wiped out in Nis. After three days, the troops of the allied armies arrived in the city. From July 1914 to October 1915, Nis was the seat of the Government and the National Assembly, the war capital of Serbia in the First World War. The government was placed in the building of the district authority (the current University of Niš), and the National Assembly occupied the Officers’Mess Building.

October 12^th

On October 10^th the Nis Association of Pensioners celebrated its 70^th anniversary. Deputy Mayor Niša prof. Dr Milos Bandjur greeted everyone present at the ceremonial academy and pointed out that the city was proud of the fact that the Nis Association of Pensioners was one of the oldest in Serbia and that today marked the 70^th anniversary of its existence. “Seven decades is not a small period, and certainly the past generations of our pensioners are to be thanked for the stable and long-lasting work of the association. According to the latest statistics, Serbia has a total of 1.7 million pensioners and therefore it is very important to implement measures to prevent and combat poverty, especially the poverty of older people and pensioners, as well as measures that will ensure the quality, faster development and more even territorial distribution of social care institutions and the bringing closer services and capacity to users.The most adequate response, not only for a better life of pensioners, but for all categories of society, is the sustainable economic growth of the society. A fundamental economic issue is a fair and sustainable sharing of resources between the working people and the unemployed and every effort is made to ensure that economic growth and productivity are sustainable. It is important to enable all members of society to engage in creating a better and more humane attitude towards pensioners and creating a much more favorable position in the society of this extremely important social category of people, “said Deputy Mayor Bandjur. According to him, the times are difficult, but the City of Nis is ready to meet the needs of the pensioners according to its jurisdictions and to provide every kind of logistical and other assistance within its competences. We must not forget that this age requires certain obligations of the society and that the time that elderly people spend should be of equally high quality and content, as in the younger population.

October 7^th

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic opened today the 7^th Auto Show in Nis. This event is interesting not only for the citizens of Nis, but for all the inhabitants of southern Serbia who gravitate in this area. “The fact that we are here in the Sports Hall Cair for the 7^th time for the Auto Show is a success in itself, because in this way Nis can be compered to far richer and larger cities”, said Mayor Bulatovic. This year’s Car Show is the seventh in a row and will gather car and engine enthusiasts with a wide range of accompanying equipment. The world’s leading manufacturers of vehicles, parts and auto equipment will be presented on two thousand square meters. New models of passenger and cargo vehicles will be presented. Sellers of two-wheelers will present their latest motorcycles. Banks and leasing companies will offer more favorable loans and leasing. The general impression is that Nis has the potential to develop this aspect of the fair presentation of the auto industry.

October 7^th

On October 7^th, 1912, at dawn the Second Infantry Regiment Knjaz Mihailo started its war journey through the Balkans and First World War. In the First Balkan War, the regiment participated in the Kumanovo, Prilep and Bitola battles. In the Second Balkan War it took part in the Battle of Bregalnica, and due to the strength and vigor of its fighters, the regiment receives the “iron” epithet. In the First World War, the regiment participated in the Battle of Cerska and in 1918 it took part in the liberation of Nis, and on its war road the regiment arrived all the way to Timisoara. In honor of the Second Infantry Regiment Knjaz Mihailo, October 7^th is celebrated by the Army of Serbia as the Day of the Third Brigade of the Land Forces. Commander of the Land Forces, Lieutenant General Milosav Simovic, welcomed the guests and emphasized that the Third Brigade of the Land Forces successfully performed all the tasks in the previous period and underlined that the new duties of this brigade were securing the state border to Macedonia and Bulgaria. On the occasion of the Day of the Brigade, individual professional soldiers and technical staff received awards and recognitions.

September 30^th             

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic met today with the former EU Parliamentarians at Nis City Hall. “Your visit is very important, for our country and our town, especially since it comes at the moment important for European integration process of Serbia. Membership in the European Union is a priority in the foreign policy of our country, and it is also important for the functioning of large cities like Nis, because a number of investments and market opportunities opened up. This is especially important in the light of the recent challenges that await us in the negotiation process by chapters. An important message for the citizens of Serbia is that the European Union has approved the opening of chapters 23 and 24 in the accession negotiations. Bearing in mind that these are the two most important chapters on which the European Union rests, namely the respect for the rights and freedoms of all citizens and the rule of law, the opening of these chapters represents a great recognition to our government and our country of its progress in the implementation of reforms”, said Mayor Bulatovic. According to him, through the adoption of strategically important documents and action plans that are in line with the documents of the European Union, City of Nis, as a local government, wants to contribute to the acceleration of the reform process and show that we are a good partner to the Serbian government at the local level in its efforts to bring us closer to membership in EU.

September 23^rd

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic and H.E. Ambassador of FYROM Vera Jovanovska Tipko met today at Nis City Hall to discuss the cooperation that would focus on culture, student exchange, tourism, but also on education and economy. “Cooperation should primarily be at the level of the chambers of commerce of the two countries, and then at a lower level”, as Mayor Bulatovic said. “There is the possibility of intensifying cooperation with the Nis Cluster for Advanced Technologies and our Cluster for  Communication and Information Technologies”, as H.E. Vera Jovanovska Tipko said at the press conference held at the City Hall after the meeting.

September 22^nd

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic met today in the City Hall with 9 former leaders of the city. “We have met today as a sign of gratitude and respect for people, time and citizens who supported them directly or indirectly,” Mayor Bulatovic pointed out. According to Bulatovic, today’s meeting is an example of how we should all work together and that we all should lead the city together to a better future. “My obligation as the Mayor is to learn every day and find out something new, and, from the people who were the first people in the city, there is something to be heard and learned,” Myor Bulatovic said.

September 19^th

The certificates for successfully completed U-NI 2016 professional practice were awarded at Nis City Hall. U-NI Practice in 2016 is a project implemented by the City of Nis and the University of Nis, and was carried out by the City of Nis Youth Office. The project aimed to provide young people with the opportunity to acquire professional practice, to receive a certificate of practice that is recognized by the University of Nis as extracurricular activity and 3 additional ESP points, and recommendations by mentors that could serve for better positioning in the labor market.

The introductory speech was given by Stevan Zivkovic, the Head of the Youth Office of the City of Nis, who said that the practice was initiated for the second time with the help of the Youth Office and the City of Nis. The practice lasted for a month in the public sector, and in the future it was expected that more institutions would participate. This year there were 116 positions for interns, 53 applications and 48 selected candidates. Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic said that all this wasachieved due to the joint initiative and work of the institutions in Nis.

The Evaluation of the U-NI Practice Project in 2016 showed that students were extremely satisfied with this year’s practice, and public sector mentors had the expertise and goodwill to get into the work with their young colleagues. There is an idea that the following year, the duration of the practice will be extended, increasing the number of offered positions for practitioners, and potentially providing the practice in the private sector.